Developing new methodology to study layered connectivity in the human brain using MRI

What sets the brain apart from other organs is its complex connectivity. In order to study brain function, we need techniques for measuring brain connections with high precision in living humans. The goal of this project is to develop new methods for measuring brain connections using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

The project focuses on the cortex, a thin sheet of grey matter surrounding the brain. The cortex is well developed in primates, particularly humans, and plays a key role in cognition. It has a characteristic layered structure; each layer containing different varieties of neurons and connections. The input and output of a cortical region is determined by the connections of the layers. Thus, measuring layer connectivity can give us key insight into information flow in the brain. But these detailed anatomical patterns have only been studied in animal brains, where it is possible to precisely delineate connections.

This project aims to develop new methodology to study layered connectivity in the human brain using MRI. The incredible flexibility of MRI allows us to sensitise the measured signals to multiple aspects of tissue microstructure. We will use this flexibility to create MRI measurements that are sensitive to cortical lamination and integrate these measurements with computational models of laminar connectivity.

This project will open the door to addressing new questions about human brain organisation, such as whether brain areas are organized hierarchically, how information flows across the brain during cognition, learning, and memory; and what happens in diseases that disrupt brain connections